An economic downturn in the United States could threaten access to medical care and serve as the catalyst for comprehensive health care overhaul, predicted an expert during a panel discussion on lessons learned from the 1990s failed health overhaul attempt. Read more »
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, whose members provide health care coverage to nearly one in three of all Americans, unveiled a new proposal that aims to cover a large chunk of 47 million uninsured Americans. Read more »
Senate Finance Committee members who met to lay out the options for an economic stimulus package discussed the possibility of temporarily boosting federal Medicaid spending to help jump-start the economy, but there were no immediate signs they would push hard for such a provision at a markup next week. Read more »
The House failed to override President Bush's second veto of a children's health insurance bill, again confounding Democrats' plans to expand government-sponsored health coverage to include an additional four million low-income kids. Read more »
Congress should direct the Department of Health and Human Services to designate a program that determines which health care services work best, an Institute of Medicine (IOM) report recommends. Read more »
The leaders of the Senate Finance Committee are urging the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to work with a variety of groups to implement provisions of a new law that expands a Medicare physician reporting initiative. Read more »